Ecology of High Altitude Waters

Dean Jacobsen and Olivier Dangles

Synthesizes current knowledge on patterns and processes in the ecology of high altitude streams, lakes, and wetlands

Focuses on the key characteristics of these ecosystems such as low partial pressure of dissolved oxygen, large diel variability in temperature, low species richness, and simple food webs

Comparisons with tropical lowland and temperate alpine systems highlight the unique features of high altitude aquatic systems

Includes a global range of examples

Ecology of High Altitude Waters

Dean Jacobsen and Olivier Dangles

Description

Truly high altitude aquatic ecosystems are found primarily at lower latitudes: vast regions in the tropical part of the Andes, the Himalayas and Tibet, considerable areas in East Africa, and minor zones of Oceania. However, despite their abundance in these regions, their biology and ecology has never been summarized in detail. A current synthesis of the topic is therefore timely. High altitude waters are ideal systems with which to address a broad range of key and topical themes in ecology, both at the regional and global scales. From specific functional adaptations of aquatic species to harsh environmental conditions through to global diversity patterns along altitudinal gradients and extinction risks of mountain populations due to vanishing glaciers, ecological patterns and processes found in high altitude waters are both diverse and singular. Although poorly considered in classical textbooks of ecology and limnology, high altitude waters have much to offer existing (aquatic) ecological theories and applications. These often threatened and exploited habitats are also ideal for studying the intimate interactions between social and ecological systems that characterize the majority of ecosystems in the Anthropocene.

Ecology of High Altitude Waters

Dean Jacobsen and Olivier Dangles

Table of Contents

1. The high altitude environment2. The waterscape at high altitudes3. Living conditions in high altitude waters4. Organisms and diversity patterns at high altitudes5. Strategies and adaptations to the aquatic life at high altitude6. Community dynamics in highland watersheds7. Energy flow and species interactions at the edge8. High altitude waters in the face of climate change9. A growing human footprint in the highlands10. Conserving sustainable ecosystem services

Ecology of High Altitude Waters

Dean Jacobsen and Olivier Dangles

Author Information

Dean Jacobsen, Associate Professor, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen,Olivier Dangles, Director of Investigations, French Institute for Research and Development

Dr. Dean Jacobsen has a permanent position as Associate Professor in freshwater ecology at the Freshwater Biological Section, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Since 1994 he has been doing a large part of his research in Andean streams in Ecuador, in addition to projects in other high places such as Bolivia, Peru, and Tibet. His work has focused on biodiversity, community ecology, eco-physiology, bio-assessment, climate change, and glacial influence, with benthic fauna as a model system. He has published more than 100 peer-reviewed papers, book chapters, popular dissemination, and reports.

Dr. Olivier Dangles has a permanent position as a director of investigations in ecology and development at the French Institute for Research and Development (IRD). He has a broad interest in community ecology, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable development in both natural and cultivated systems. Over the last ten years, he has focused his research on biodiversity dynamics in the face of climate change in the tropical Andes, mainly Ecuador and Bolivia where he has worked for 9 and 2 years, respectively. He has more than 100 publications in peer-reviewed journals and has contributed to 3 books.